Economy - key thinkers

Hobbes

• Economy is reliant on a strong state, be that state-led or personal

Burke

• Fan of Smith’s invisible hand

• Advocate for natural free market and free trade

• Wanted reduced interventionism

• Economic management should be influenced by pragmatism and prudence

• Dogma should not influence economics

Oakeshott

• Natural free-market

  • Pragmatically moderated

• Intellectual imperfection means state should not manage economics

  • State management would require rationalism, which is not possible due to intellectual imperfection

Rand

• Free-market capitalism

  • Due to property rights and other individual rights being promoted and protected under capitalism

• ‘Money is the barometer of society’s virtue’

Nozick

• Property rights!

• Taxation is ‘legalised slavery’ and compulsory taxes are ‘forced labour’

  • Taxation basically means people have to work for free for another person’s gain

• Welfare is also theft

  • Infringes property rights

  • Dependency culture fostered

• Free-market capitalism

  • Private and deregulated economy